Borneo, Semporna: Snorkelling

At Singapore airport we said farewell to Carol and Steve who were on a flight to Melbourne in 4 or 5 hours. (Turns out it left 3 hours late at 3am due to technical difficulties.) We changed terminals for our flight to Kuala Lumpur where we would get a flight to Tawau in Borneo.

While in Singapore we decided to buy a new camera as our good camera had broken itself and we had sent it back to Melbourne with Carol and Steve. Given that it broke while we were in the heat and humidity of Tioman Island we (Frank) decided to get a "tough" camera and ended up with an Olympus TG-310 (with "free" 8GB card and second battery) for AUD$300.

Our plane landed in Kuala Lumpur at around midnight and our plane to Tawau didn't leave until 7am. We can only assume it is quite deliberate but all the seats in the airport have armrests which means they can't be used to stretch out on. We found a quiet corner of the airport, one with like-minded souls intent on sleep, for our wait. I ended up stretching out on the floor and probably got a few hours in there somewhere. Sylvia tried to sleep sitting up and got less nap time.

In Tawau, while we were waiting for our bags to appear, we were approached by a "young" (early to mid twenties?) Swedish couple who were also on their way to Semporna who asked if we wanted to share a taxi. They were divers who had been there a few months earlier and were returning in the hope of getting some work at one of the many dive companies as they were low on funds and had another 6 weeks before their return to Sweden. After repeatedly telling the touts that he had been there before he managed to get an air-conditioned minibus for MR20 each (about $6.50 (3 Malaysian Ringgits to the dollar (and the last time you will be told))).

We had 6 nights in this part of Borneo (Sabah) before our next flight from Sandakan. We had decided on 2 nights around here so we could go snorkelling for a day. After discovering that the island resorts wanted at least MR600 per night PER PERSON, and not fancying the backpackers accommodation on Mabul, we retreated to the Seafest Hotel on the waterfront to consider our options. We had a beer (or two) by the pool which smelt strangely of fish. Turns out that, even though we were 3 storeys up, the smell from the nearby fish market travelled!

After a good night's sleep on the most comfortable bed we had been on for around 3 weeks we went on an all day trip to Mataking Island for snorkelling. They told us when we booked that Mataking Island was better than the alternative Mabul Island where they normally go. As a bit of trivia, Mataking Island is where they filmed the first series of Survivor. It has two patches of "land" joined by a sand spit. Apparently the contestants were on the remote bit of land but at low tide used the sand spit to go barter for food from the locals on the main island.

Turns out we were the only snorkellers as the other 7 "punters" were diving. The chief guide, one of 3 dive masters on board, told us that the 3 sites they were diving at were great for snorkelling as they started each dive by a shallow reef - we would go shallow while they went deep.

The snorkelling at all sites was quite good but I suspect Sylvia was particularly taken by the first site. Not sure how she does it but she managed to spot 3 turtles and even managed to follow one around for a while - so close she could have touched it.

While there were quite a lot of different fish and corals to see, we both agree that some of the sites on Tioman Island were more spectacular. They had much larger and varied coral formations with many more fish (but maybe not as many varieties of fish).

Should also make mention of the shirt that refused to get lost. While at the first dive site the boat driver told me that my shirt had blown overboard and sunk to the bottom. While not disastrous it was a bit annoying as it was a quick drying hiking shirt that would be useful later in the trip. Around 2 hours later, after moving around 400 metres and having some lunch, the boat driver gave a shout and drove the boat to where my shirt had drifted!

That night, after some very tasty satays and kampung fried rice at a nearby restaurant, we luxuriated in our comfortable bed because you never know what the next bed will be like!